Tuesday, 19 July 2016

SLEEPING MARBLES

Yesterday morning I went out early, just after 4am and the temperature already up to 16°, to see if I could find some roosting butterflies in the hope that if I did find some they would be coated in dew.

It didn't take long to locate a few roosting Marbled Whites Melanargia galathea ...and yes, they did have a coating of dew, although not as much as I would have liked given that after a short walk through the long grass my boots and my trousers were already soaked through.

I also found some male Chalk Hill Blue Butterflies Lysandra coridon they seemed to be early risers and were already on the way to 'drying out'.

By 7.15am the temperature was rising (20°) in the warm sunshine and the butterflies were already taking to the wing and only briefly stopping to spread their wings and gain that little extra bit of warmth.

I also saw this roosting moth Sulpher Pearl Sitochroa palealis.

Not a bad few of hours, I got some reasonable images, a thorough soaking...and was back home in time for breakfast.

AND.......

....I also managed to get a fat hand!....I guess it's bound to happen If you go crawling about in in the long grass early in the morning, some sleepy insect is going to take offence at being woken up and is going to...BITE YOU!

Since I took these photos this morning my hand has gotten a little fatter and my forearm is now joining it, I can't fully close my hand and the 'blister' has started to weep...apart from a slight itching there isn't any pain, all I've got to remember is...DON'T SCRATCH IT! ...[;o)

About Me

Hi, and thank you for taking the time to visit my Blog.
My name is Trevor a.k.a. The Herald. I live in a corner of Bedfordshire close to the borders of Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, hence the name of the Blog.
I`m essentially a country boy having been born in a small village in Cambridgeshire a few score years ago and have always enjoyed the countryside and all the marvels and beauty it has on offer. My interest in photography started when I was about 11 or 12 years old and was allowed to use my parents Kodak Instamatic camera and although the interest has wained a few times (work - family etc.) I`ve almost always had a camera of some kind close to hand.
Now, having been made redundant at the begining of 2010 and subsequently taking early retirement I now have a bit more time to spend out in the countryside with my camera. I hope the pictures that I post here will give you as much pleasure in viewing them as I hope I will get in taking them. I hope they will inspire you to come back and visit regularly. The Herald.